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Drone footage captured pro surfer Matt Wilkinson’s narrow escape from a 1.5m great white shark off the coast of Ballina in northern New South Wales.
The world championship tour surfer was paddling his board near Sharpes Beach on Wednesday when a shark swam quickly behind him.
“I heard a splash and a noise and I looked around and couldn’t see anything,” Wilkinson said, according to a statement from Surf Life Saving NSW.
Surf lifeguards were operating a drone overhead and were able to broadcast a warning from the plane’s speakers.
“The drone came down and told me there was a dangerous shark in the area, go back to the beach,” Wilkinson said.
“I got to shore feeling a little weird and the lifeguards showed me the images and I realized how close I was without knowing I was there. Looks like he’s going for my leg and he’s changed his mind.
“I’ve been surfing with sharks my whole life and I understand that they are there and I know enough about them to know that they don’t have much interest in humans. I’m glad the shark reconsidered at the last second today, ”Wilkinson said.
After the incident, the beach was evacuated and closed for the day.
Wilkinson was also competing when Mick Fanning was attacked by a shark in South Africa in 2015.
“I feel grateful and quite weird at the same time, but happy that I decided not to go. When I looked at the pictures, I saw the similarities, like, I had a yellow leg rope and Mick’s board was yellow, that’s what I was thinking about when I walked in, ”Wilkinson said.
“I called my wife because I didn’t want her to see the images before I saw them. She doesn’t want me to surf for a couple of days. “
The drone’s operator, Beau Monks, described seeing the encounter from his monitor on the ground.
It came out of nowhere and then headed straight for Matt. It moved pretty fast. I was tracking him, notified the first responders and used the drone’s speaker to get everyone out of the water, ”he said.
“In 10 seconds he was in the surfer and five seconds later he was gone.”
Monks told ABC at the news breakfast that the sound of the drone may have startled the great white shark.
“I’m not entirely sure why the shark decided to walk away at the last minute. It could have been something as simple as bumping into the rope on his leg, or it could have been the drone. Sea creatures are known to drift away when the drone approaches, “he said.
Drones fly over various beaches in New South Wales every day of the school holidays and are used to warn surfers and swimmers of a variety of dangers, including marine animals.
Surf Life Saving NSW CEO Steven Pearce said drones were the future of aerial surveillance.
“They have proven to be cheaper and more effective than helicopters and are preferred by the community,” he said.
